Beware of False Gods
THERE IS ONLY 'ONE TRUE GOD'
by: Pastor Max Solbrekken, D.D.
THOU SHALT HAVE NO OTHER
GODS BEFORE ME
"Thou shalt have NO other gods before Me. Thou shalt not
bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous
God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and
fourth generation of them that hate Me; And showing mercy unto thousands of
them that love Me, and keep My commandments. Thou shalt not take the name of
the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh
His name in vain." (Exodus 20:3, 4-7)
Jesus said: "Come unto Me all ye who labour and
are heavy laden and I will give you rest." (Matthew 11:28)
The Bible says, "Casting all your care (anxieties, fears,
diseases) upon Him (Jesus Christ) for He cares for you." (1 Peter 5:7)
History is marred by people facing tragedy, violence and
suffering. It has been marked by thousands of years of fear, greed,
hatred and war between people and countries. We have been beset by
pestilences, plagues and epidemics. People have been affected by
sickness, death and sorrow. People are suffering both mentally and
physically.
THE HUMAN RACE FACES INTOLERANCE, RACISM, PERSECUTION
The human race is far from immune to religious intolerance,
radical strife, ethnic superiority and tribal brutality, as witnessed by the
1990's tribal massacres in Rwanda and Burundi. And in Sudan, where
during the last fifteen years nearly 2 million black Christians have been
ethnically cleansed from the land through persecution, execution, forced
conversion to Islam and a life of slavery, by ruthless and evil government
gunmen.
Unfortunately, the story doesn't end there; it continues.
Authentic reports reveal on-going persecution against Christians by Muslims in
Indonesia, and in Communist China where multitudes have been brutalized,
imprisoned and martyred for their faith in Jesus Christ. The suffering continues
with no end in sight.
That we live in a painfully, dangerous world is an
understatement. In light of what has happened on September 11, 2001, when
the world saw the devil's face in the demon inspired work of 19 Islamic suicide
hijackers and their fanatical leaders and supporters around the world. The
suffering and pain this horror caused is monumental. This example of
evil, of people hating people, races hating races, religions hating religions.
The pain that people are suffering is deep and emotional and there seems to be
no compassion in this cold, hard world.
The curse that came upon the world through the disobedience of
Adam and Eve, our first parents, has brought us to this fearful moment in
history. People have turned to violence, murder and mayhem which causes
pain and suffering on every level.
In trying to deal with the pain and suffering, people have
become addicted to gambling, drug addiction and alcohol abuse as they are
searching for happiness, and not finding it. Pornography, prostitution
and homosexuality are gaining respectability among people. The side
effects of all these are painful scenes such as broken homes, child poverty,
abortion and people committing suicide worldwide. People are suffering
emotional pain, suffering hurt and searching for something to heal their
suffering.
THE BLESSED HOLY SPIRIT IS
IGNORED BY MANY CLERGY & PEOPLE IN GENERAL
The absence of the Holy Spirit in the lives of many preachers
has turned churches into spiritual mausoleums. I believe that many of the
societal ills that are destroying our nation, is a direct result of the lack of
clear cut Bible preaching in our churches.
Without spiritual and moral direction, how can we expect young
people to know right from wrong? What an awful indictment against the
Church in this end time hour.
No wonder there is greed, hatred and violence among
people, where there is compromise and backsliding in our Bible Colleges,
Seminaries and Churches. A congregation of people usually rises no higher
than its spiritual leader's preaching, teaching and example. We can blame
governments, judges, school boards, educators, media and Hollywood. I
contend that it begins in the Church and spreads into the home, school and
society at large.
WHAT HAS BEEN THE OUTCOME
of such negligence? We have wide spreading back sliding in the 'pulpit
and pews', resulting in a lack of reverence for God, distrust of the Holy Bible
and disinterest in spreading the Word of God and missionary work in general.
This abandonment of Holy Scripture is the beginning. The real mission of the Church has
changed. The Churches have lost
the desire for winning souls for Christ. The Church has become
devastated, totally ignoring the plight of hurting men and women, people who
are without God in this world.
We have sown to the wind and are now reaping the world-wind!
Backslidden preachers have contributed - by failing to present the Word of God
to their people that are their church members. The moral decline in
our homes, schools, courts, governments and society at large is obviously a
sign. The negative spiritual climate of our nation is largely due to such
silence on vital moral issues and by fear of preaching the truth lest someone
is offended! How utterly reprehensible such actions are to God, Who is ABSOLUTE
TRUTH.
How despicable,
unacceptable and cowardly we have become.
Allowing the Christian Church to be hijacked by the leadership of agnostic
seminary professors and pervert theologians, "who hold down the truth in
unrighteousness: and who call evil good." (Romans 1:18, Isaiah 5:20)
RENEGADE ARCHANGEL: MASTERMIND BEHIND ATTACKS
Satan is a liar, murderer and destroyer! Jesus called Satan by
three names: Satan (hebrew)- the adversary, enemy; devil (greek) - liar,
false accuser and traducer; Beelzebub - god of flies, filth! Jesus said:
"The thief (Satan) cometh not but for to steal, kill and destroy. I am
come that ye might have life and have it more abundantly." (John 10: 10)
The Bible says: "For the Son of man is come to seek and to
save that which was lost." (Luke 19:10) "Come unto Me, all ye that
labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." (Matt. 28:11,12)
"I am the way, the truth, and the life; no man cometh unto the Father but
by Me." (John 14:6); "For this purpose the Son of God was manifested,
that He might destroy the works of the devil." (1 John 3:8)
700 years before our Lord's first advent, God's prophet stated:
"Surely He hath borne our grief's, and carried our sorrows: yet we did
esteem Him stricken, smitten God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for
our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our
peace was upon Him and with His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep
have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way; and the Lord hath
laid upon Him the iniquity of us all." (Isaiah 53:4-6)
THERE IS HEALING for the total person! There is healing
for hurting people through the redemptive work of Jesus Christ on
Golgotha! A gospel song says:
"Jesus paid it all - All to Him I owe - Sin had left a
crimson stain - He washed it white as snow;
Not only did Jesus destroy the works of the devil through His
efficacious and vicarious death on the cross, He destroyed Satan Himself.
The enemy no longer has any power over those who trust completely and totally
in the redemptive work of our Lord Jesus Christ: "...that through death He
might destroy him that had the power of death, that is the devil; And deliver
them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to
bondage." (Hebrew 2:14-15)
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN? This is concrete proof of Satan's demise,
and Jesus Christ's total and absolute victory over him for time and eternity!
It means that Jesus' death destroyed the devil, so that we could be
delivered! Simply put 'Christ's Victory, Satan's Defeat and our Liberty!'
The Bible says that Jesus, "made Himself of no reputation,
and took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of
men: And being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself, and became
obedient unto death, even the death of the cross."
"Wherefore God also hath highly exalted Him, and given Him
a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should
bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And
that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God
the Father." (Philippians 2:5-11)
"Giving thanks unto the Father...Who hath delivered us from
the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of His dear Son:
In Whom we have redemption through His blood, even the forgiveness of
sins." (Colossians 1:12-14); "And having spoiled principalities and
powers, He made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it."
(Colossians 2:15)
CHRIST PURCHASED OUR
SALVATION WHEN HE SHED HIS PRECIOUS BLOOD
The Bible states: "Christ hath redeemed us from the
curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every
one that hangeth upon a cross." (Galatians 3:13) "And
He (Jesus Christ) is the head of the Church: Who is the beginning, the
firstborn from the dead (the first to die and raised, never to die again.
Lazarus was raised by had to die again); that in all things He might have the
preeminence."
"And, having made peace through the blood of His cross, by
Him to reconcile all things unto Himself; by Him, I say, whether they be things
in earth, or things in heaven." (Colossians
1:18-20)
"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten
Son, that whosoever believeth in Him, should not perish, but have everlasting
life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but
that the world through Him might be saved. He that believeth on Him is
not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath
not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God." (John 3:16-18)
"Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth My word,
and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come
into condemnation: but is passed from death unto life." (John 5:24)
"And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this
life is in His Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the
Son of God hath not life. These things have I written unto you that believe on
the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and
that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God." (1 John 5:11-13)
St. Paul declares: "Therefore being justified by
faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: By Whom also we
have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of
the glory of God. For when we were yet without strength, in due time
Christ died for the ungodly.
"But God commended His love toward us, in that, while we
were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified
by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. For it, when we
were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more,
being reconciled, we shall be saved by His life." (Romans 5:1, 6-10)
WHAT MUST PEOPLE DO TO BE HEALED?
When Daniel was called to interpret the spiritual dream that God
gave Nebuchadnezzar, he specifically warned the king of coming judgment if he
would not change his ways! What would he have to do? "Break off thy
sins by being righteous, and thine iniquities by showing mercy to the
poor." What could have happened had he obeyed? God would have
been merciful to him: "If it may be a lengthening of thy
tranquility."
Did the arrogant Nebuchadnezzar show remorse, repent or turn
from his wicked ways? No, he did not! What was the outcome? The hammer of
God's judgment fell:
"The same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar:
and he was driven from men, and did eat grass as oxen, and his body was wet
with the dew of heaven, until his hairs were grown like eagles' feathers, and
his nails like birds' claws. And at the end of the days I Nebuchadnezzar
lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me, and I
blessed the most High, and I praised and honoured Him that liveth for ever, whose
dominion is an everlasting dominion, and His kingdom is from generation to
generation." (Daniel 4:33-37)
WHAT CAN PEOPLE LEARN FROM THIS?
God is in control, He hates pride in people and blesses people who humble
themselves and are genuinely remorseful for their sin! It speaks of God's
great mercy to people who honestly desire to live a decent, God-fearing life
and care for the needy and less fortunate. It also reveals why nations in
general and people in particular who have left God out of their lives, get into
deep trouble.
AUGUST STRINDBERG, the celebrated Swedish author, wrote these
words shortly before his death: "Clearly said - I ascribe all my
misfortunes to this one fact, that I have been godless! An individual that has
broken contact with God cannot receive any blessings. All this talk about
'being your own man and making your own happiness' is chaff.
"If the Lord does not build the house, they labour in vain
who build it. That is the whole truth! That misfortune can also strike a person
of faith, we know. But the outcome is not the same. These misfortunes seem only
like trials that pass over and leave peace in their wake.
"A curse rests on everything that an ungodly person puts
his hand to. If money comes his way, it will disappear like it came. Nothing
remains in the life of the ungodly!"
THE MERCY OF GOD ALWAYS REACHES OUT TO PEOPLE WHO ARE SINNERS AND
BACKSLIDERS
What do we as a people need to do? "Come now, and let
us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall
be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. If
ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land: But if ye refuse
and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the Lord hath
spoken it." (Isaiah 1:16-20)
Many people are not convicted of their sinful actions, because
they do not know God's hatred for sin. Godly sorrow for sin - which brings
genuine repentance and faith to receive His blessing - comes from the Word of
God and the Holy Spirit. If the rank and file of our nation understood how our
sinfulness grieves the Heavenly Father, people would seek by His grace to serve
Him to the utmost of our ability
HERE IS HIS WORD: 'Hath a nation changed their gods, which
are yet no gods? But My people have changed their glory for that which doth not
profit. Be ye astonished, O ye heavens, at this, and be ye horribly afraid, be
ye very desolate, saith the Lord. For My people have committed two EVILS; they
have forsaken Me the fountain of living waters and hewed them out cisterns,
broken cisterns, that can hold no water.' (Jeremiah 2:11-13)
God condemns the rebellious actions of the ancient people of
Israel whom He called His chosen people. He asks the universe to
witness this astonishing event - His people turning from Him, the 'Fountain of
Living Waters' to trust in man-made 'broken cisterns that can hold no water'.
It is inconceivable that clear thinking, intelligent people
would forsake the God of the universe, the creator of life and all things
visible and invisible, and turn to imaginary gods and goddesses - both medieval
and today's New Age! The devil knows how to make fools out of people since he
is the biggest fool of all.
The devil has orchestrated and failed in his own rebellion
against the Almighty: "For thou hast said in thine heart, I will
ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will
sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will
ascend above the heights of the clouds: I will be like the most High."
(Isaiah 14:13,14)
SATAN IS BEHIND FALSE
RELIGIONS, MAN MADE GODS AND PROPHETS
Satan has engineered all false religions, and demonically
deluded false prophets, who have claimed to speak in the name of The Almighty
from the very beginning of time.
In his powerful book 'The Knowledge of the Holy', A.W. Tozer
writes: "Among the sins to which the human heart is prone, hardly any is
more hateful to God than idolatry, for idolatry is at bottom a libel on His
character. The idolatrous heart assumes that God is other than He is - in
itself a monstrous sin - and substitutes for the true God one made after its
own likeness. Always this God will conform to the image of the one who created
it and will be base or pure, cruel or kind according to the moral state of the
mind from which it emerges.
"A god begotten in the shadows of a fallen heart will quite
naturally be no true likeness of the true God. Surely this must be
serious affront to the most High God before Whom cherubim and seraphim
continually do cry, Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God of Sabaoth."
Allah, Shiva, Krishna, Buddha, Odin, Thor, Zeus, Artemis
(Diana), Gaia and a host of other gods and goddesses are only imitations of the
One True Almighty and Eternal Lord God Jehovah and Father of our Lord Jesus
Christ
ASK YOURSELF: How could the Eternal God command
Muslims to kill Jews and Christians, when He repeatedly states that He is
the 'God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob', the Jews are His chosen
people and that so long as this universe exists, He will protect them and keep
covenant with them? (Exodus 3:6,14; Jeremiah 31-37; 33:20-26)
The crucified and risen Lord Jesus specifically told Saul of
Tarsus that when he was persecuting, imprisoning and killing Christians, he was
persecuting God: "And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto
him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou Me? And he said, Who art Thou, Lord? And
the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest." (Acts 9:5)
In the Quran (sura 5:60) we read that Allah has transformed Jews
and Christians into 'apes and swine', who worship 'evil'.
As recently as 2002, the leading Muslim imam in Baghdad, Iraq parroted Allah
when he affirmed: "Jews and Americans are apes and swine."
In the 1930s, Haj Amin el Husseini was invited by his hero,
Adolf Hitler, to visit Berlin. While speaking on Berlin radio, Yasser Arafat's
Egyptian uncle, the Muslim Grand Mufti of Jerusalem stated: "Kill
the Jews - kill them with your teeth - this is well pleasing to Allah!"
THE QURAN SAYS: "Jews are the enemies of Allah, Muhammed
and the angels, and Muslims must kill them wherever they find them." (sura
4:101 and sura 4: 91); "When the month with respect (Ramadan) is over, you
must persecute, imprison and kill non-Muslims wherever you find them." (Al
Toba 5: 9); "And continue your battle against non-Muslims until they
accept Islam. And if they do not seek Allah and will not leave the country,
imprison them and kill them, wherever you find them." (Al. Nofal 8: 39)
"All who fight against Allah or convert to other religions
shall be executed, crucified or have their hands and feet hacked off on
opposite sides." (sura 5334); "Regarding unbelievers (non-Muslims),
they are determined enemies of Muslims. Muslims shall arrest them, imprison
them and ambush them everywhere." (sura 9: 5); "You shall grab them
and kill them in every place where you find them." (sura 4: 90)
"Allah will create terror in the hearts of unbelievers.
Hack off their heads and cut off their finger tips." (sura 8: 12);
"Fight those who do not believe in Allah, who do not acknowledge the
Religion of Truth, even if they are from the people of the Book "Jews and
Christians" (sura 9: 29). "Muslims shall fight against unbelievers
who live among them." (sura 9: 123)
In 2002 A.D. Islamic leaders said: "Israel is little Satan,
Europe is Satan and America is the great Satan." WHY? They are quoting
their holy book, the Quran: 'Jews and Christians can be likened to
Satan.' (sura 59: 11)
In a piece titled 'God and Allah Aren't the Same', Marvin Olasky
wrote: "Does the god of Islamic imagination act toward man as God
described in the Bible does? Read the Quran: If you know anything about the
civilization of 7th century west Asia, you won't find many surprises. The Quran
has Allah promising gifts to his warriors, just like conquerors of old
dispensed boons to theirs.
"Suras 44,52,55,56,69, 78 and others include descriptions
of how good Muslims after death will have 'a life of pleasure' complete
with meat, bananas and large-eyed, beautiful young women."
DO NOT BE DECEIVED - THERE IS
ONLY ONE TRUE GOD
PEOPLE - DON'T FORGET THIS TRUTH: The Eternal God is the
God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob! He is Elohim, Jehovah, Shaddai, Adon, Adonai,
Adonim, El, El Elyon, Jah, Eloah, Jehovah Jirah, Jehovah Rapha, Jehovah Raah,
Jehovah Nissi, Jehovah Shammah, Jehovah Shalom, Jehovah Tsidkenu, Jehovah
Mekaddishkem and Jehovah Zeboath.
After his conversion, Saul changed his name to Paul. His words
to the Galatians relate perfectly to the followers of Joseph Smith today:
"I marvel that ye are so soon removed from Him that called you into the
grace of Christ unto another gospel. Which is not another; but there be some
that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ.
"But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other
gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be
accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, of any man preach any
other gospel unto you that ye received, let him be accused." (Galatians
1:8,9)
PEOPLE MUST NOT WHITEWASH
GOD'S WORD
God exposed the two evils His people had committed. He did not
whitewash these sins. He called them two evils! Therefore, people must not
minimize them either! We must expose them, as I am doing here.
Here is an important question: "If the religion, guru or
god one follows is unimportant, WHY would the Living God be so specific about
His name in the Decalogue? Let's examine these awesome words:
"Thou shalt have NO other gods before Me. Thou shalt not
bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous
God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and
fourth generation of them that hate Me; And showing mercy unto thousands of
them that love Me, and keep My commandments. Thou shalt not take the name of
the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh
His name in vain." (Exodus 20:3,4-7)
WHO IS THE GOD referred to here? We'll let Him answer:
"And God spake all these words, saying, I am the Lord thy God, which
brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage."
(Exodus 20:1,2)
Did Buddha, Shiva, Krishna, Odin, Thor, Zeus, Artemis (Diana) or
Gaia bring the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt? No, they did not!
Did Allah bring the children of Israel out of the land of bondage? A thousand
times NO! Allah is a relative new comer among the god-pack! In the 7th
Century, Muhammad banned the worship of all tribal gods and goddesses, except
the most powerful, Al-ilah.
WHAT DOES IT MEAN to take the name of the Lord in vain? For
years, pastors taught people that it is to curse or swear using the Lord's
name. It means more than that, however. Calling the Creator and
Saviour of the world by another name than His own, is taking the Name of the
LORD in vain.
Can you imagine how the Eternal God feels when people call Him
by spurious names like Gaia, Allah, Krishna or Buddha? That is a great affront
to the Almighty, Omnipotent, Omniscient and Omnipresent God of all flesh.
THE BLUE PRINT TO REVIVAL
IS FOR PEOPLE TO COME BACK TO FEARING THE LORD, THE ONE TRUE GOD
What we need is an old-fashioned revival of righteousness,
holiness and the fear of the Lord, in order to turn people to the truth! How do
we do that? The Bible says: "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of
wisdom; and the knowledge of the Holy is understanding." (Proverbs.
8:10) The key here is 'The fear of the Lord'.
For many years, preachers of the Gospel have labeled 2
Chronicles 7:14 the 'Blueprint For Revival': "If My people, which are
called by My name, shall humble themselves and pray, and seek My face, and turn
from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their
sin, and will heal their land."
1. HUMBLE OURSELVES - The
Bible says: "For thus saith the High and Holy One that inhabiteth
eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also
that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of
the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones." (Isaiah 57:15)
"But He giveth more grace. Wherefore He saith, God resisteth
the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble: "and be clothed with
humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. Humble
yourself therefore under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due
time." (James 4:6; 1 Peter 5:5,6)
The Bible says: "The fear of the Lord is to hate evil:
pride, arrogancy, and the evil way, and the forward mouth, do I hate.
Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall."
(Proverbs 8:13; 16:18)
2. PRAY - Jesus
taught His disciples to pray (Luke 11:1-4). He admonished them to pray to our
Heavenly Father in His name and promised that He would answer: "Verily,
verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask in My name, He will give it
you. Hitherto have ye asked nothing in My name: ask, and ye shall receive, that
your joy may be full." (John 16:23,24)
Praying is a prerequisite to receiving God's blessing: "If
ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much
more shall your Heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask
Him?" (Luke 11:13)
Historically, revivals of great magnitude come only through
people seeking God in fasting and prayer: "And when they had heard that,
they lifted up their voice to God with one accord, and said, Lord, Thou art
God, which hath made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all that in then is:
"And now, Lord, behold their threatenings: and grant unto
Thy servants, that with all boldness they may speak Thy Word, by stretching
forth Thine hand to heal: and that signs and wonders may be done by the name of
Thy Holy Child Jesus. And when they had prayed, the place was shaken
where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy
Ghost, and they spake the Word of God with boldness." (Acts 5:29-31)
Jesus admonished: "men ought always to pray, and not to
faint. And shall not God avenge His own elect, which cry day and night unto
Him, though He bear long with them." (Luke 18:1,7); "Therefore I say
unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive
them, and ye shall have them." (Mark. 11:24)
St. Paul declared: "Pray without ceasing." (1
Thessalonians 5:17); "I will therefore that men pray every where, lifting
up holy hands, without wrath and doubting." (1 Timothy 2:8);
"Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we
should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit Himself maketh intercession for us
with groanings which cannot be uttered." (Romans 8:26)
The Bible says: "Is any sick among you? Let him call for the
elders of the Church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the
name of the Lord: And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord
shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.
"Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for
another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man
availeth much. Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he
prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the
space of three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave
rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit." (James 5: 14-18)
3. SEEK GOD'S FACE - In
his powerful 'Mars Hill message on the 'Unknown God', St. Paul stated:
"That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after Him, and
find Him, though He be not far from every one of us: For in Him we live, and
move and have our being." (Acts 17: 27,28)
The Holy Record says: "As it is written, There is none
righteous, no, not one: There is none that seekest after God. They are all gone
out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth
good, no, not one. There is no fear of God before their eyes." (Romans
3:10-12,18)
The Almighty states: "For I know the thoughts that I think
toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you an
expected end. Then shall ye call upon Me, and ye shall go and pray unto Me, and
I will turn hearken unto you. And ye shall seek Me, and find Me, when ye shall
search for Me with all your heart. And I will be found of you, saith the
Lord." (Jeremiah 29: 11-14)
The prophet Daniel stated: "And I set my face unto the Lord
God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and
ashes: And I prayed unto the Lord my God, and made my confession, and said, O
Lord, the great and dreadful God, keeping the covenant and mercy to them that
love Him, and to them that keep His commandments; We have sinned, and have
committed iniquity, and have done wickedly, and have rebelled, even by
departing from Thy precepts and from Thy judgments:
"Neither have we hearkened to Thy servants, the prophets,
which spake in Thy name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all
the people of the land." (Daniel 3:1-6) WHAT WAS THE OUTCOME? God
dispatched the angel Gabriel with the answer to the prophet's request.
The Scriptures say: "For thus saith the Lord unto the house
of Israel, seek ye Me, and ye shall live. Seek good, and not evil,
and love the good, and establish judgment in the gate: it may be that the Lord
God will be gracious." (Amos 5:4, 14,15)
Millions of people are being deceived by the 'New Age
Movement', which is in fact, old-time occultism! Here is God's Word:
"And when they say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits
(witches, clairvoyants, fortune tellers), and unto wizards that peep, and that
mutter (spiritualist mediums): should not a people SEEK unto their God? (Isaiah
8:19,20)
Jesus said: "But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His
righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." (Matthew
6:33)
4. PEOPLE MUST TURN FROM OUR WICKED WAYS - The
Bible says: "Seek ye the Lord while He may be found, call ye upon Him
while He is near: Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous
man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and He will have mercy upon
him; and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon. But the wicked are
like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt.
There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked." (Isaiah 57: 6,7)
WHY DO PEOPLE NEED TO REPENT?
The Bible says: "The heart is deceitful above all things,
and desperately wicked: who can know it?" (Jeremiah 17: 9); "For from
within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries,
fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit,
lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: All these evil
things come from within, and defile the man." (Mark. 7: 23) St. Paul
preached that people "should repent and turn to God, and do the works meet
for repentance.." (Acts 26: 20)
John the Baptist and our Lord preached repentance and faith.
(Matthew 3: 1-3; Luke 13: 3) Jesus taught His disciples to do the
same: "And they went out, and preached that men should repent."
(Mark. 6: 12)
St. Peter emphasized: "Repent, and be baptized every one of
you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive
the gift of the Holy Ghost." (Acts 2: 38); "Repent ye therefore, and
be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing
shall come from the presence of the Lord." (Acts 3: 19)
The Bible says: "And the times of this ignorance God winked
at; but now commandeth all men everywhere to repent: Because He hath appointed
a day, in the which He will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom
He hath ordained; whereof He hath given assurance unto all men, in that He hath
raised Him from the dead." (Acts 17: 30,31)
Everyone should consider the great love of God that is reaching
out to this sin-sick world. How could anyone turn away from such love and
mercy? We were all lost in sin and rebellion - sinners by birth, nature and
choice! And then, the Creator became one of us in order to save us from our
sins. The Bible calls that grace - unmerited favour. (Ephesians
2: 8,9).
Gods goodness leads to repentance (godly sorrow for sin) that
brings forgiveness and real change in lives! (Romans. 2: 4; 2 Corinthians 7:
10)
BY GRACE ALONE - THROUGH FAITH ALONE - IN CHRIST ALONE
Here is a true story that pin-points the truth of the
incarnation - God the Son, True God from eternity and True Man - wrapped
Himself in human flesh by being born of a virgin, so that He could suffer,
bleed and die in our place, as our substitute and thereby meet the demands of
Divine Justice.
The Bible says: "Therefore it is of faith, that it might be
by grace. Now it was not written for his sake (Abraham) alone, that it was
imputed to him; But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on
Him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead, Who was delivered for
our offences, and was raised again for our justification." (Romans
4: 16-25) "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of
yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should
boast." (Ephesians 2: 8,9)
THE ATHEIST & THE GOOSE STORY
"There was once a man who didn't believe in God, and he
didn't hesitate to let others know how he felt about religion and religious
holidays, like Christmas. His wife, however, did believe, and she raised her
children to also have faith in God and Jesus, despite his disparaging comments.
One snowy Christmas Eve, his wife was taking their children to a Christmas Eve
service in the farm community in which they lived. She asked him to come, but
he refused.
"That story nonsense!" he said. "Why would
God lower Himself to come to Earth as a man? That's
ridiculous!" So she and the children left, and he stayed home.
A while later, the winds grew stronger and the snow turned into a blizzard. As
the man looked out the window, all he saw was a blinding snowstorm. He sat down
to relax before the fire for the evening.
Then, he heard a loud thump. Something had hit the window. Then,
another thump! He looked out, but couldn't see more than a few feet. When the
snow let up a little, he ventured outside to see what could have been beating
on his window. In the field near his house he saw a flock of wild geese.
Apparently, they had been flying south for the winter when they got caught in
the snowstorm and couldn't go on. They were lost and stranded on his farm, with
no food or shelter. They just flapped their wings and flew around the field in
low circles, blindly and aimlessly. A couple of them had flown into his window,
it seemed.
The man felt sorry for the geese and wanted to help them. The barn
would be a great place for them to stay, he thought. It's warm and safe; surely
they could spend the night and wait out the storm. So he walked over to the
barn and opened the doors wide, then watched and waited, hoping they would
notice the open door and go inside. But the geese just fluttered around
aimlessly or didn't seem to notice the barn or realize what it could mean for
them. The man tried to get their attention, but that just seemed to scare them
and they moved further away. He went into the house and came with some bread,
broke it up, and made a breadcrumb trail leading to the barn. They still didn't
catch on. Now he was getting frustrated. He got behind them and tried to shoo
them toward the barn. Nothing he did could get them to go into the barn where
they would be warm and safe.
"Why don't they follow me?" he
exclaimed. "Can't they see this is the only place where they can
survive the storm?" He thought for a moment and realized that
they just wouldn't follow a human. "If only I were a goose, then I
could save them," he said out loud. Then he had an idea. He went
into the barn, got one of his own geese, and carried it in his arms as he
circled around behind the flock of wild geese. He then released it.
His goose flew through the flock and straight into the barn - and
one by one the other geese followed it into
safety. He stood silently for a moment as the words he had spoken a few minutes
earlier replayed in his mind: "If only I were a goose, I could
save them!" Then he thought about what he had said to his wife
earlier: "Why would God want to become like us? That's
ridiculous!"
Suddenly, it all made sense. That is what God had done. We were
like the geese - blind, lost, perishing. God had His Son become like us so He
could show us the way and save us. That was the meaning of Christmas, he
realized. As the winds and blinding snow died down, his soul became
quiet and pondered this wonderful thought. Suddenly, he understood what Christmas
was all about, why Christ had come. Years of doubt and disbelief vanished like
the passing storm. He fell to his knees in the snow, and prayed his first
prayer: "Thank You, God, for coming in human form to get me out of
the storm!" -
author unknown
LET THE HEALING BEGIN IN YOUR LIFE - THERE IS HELP FOR
HURTING PEOPLE - AND THAT HELP IS JESUS CHRIST
Jesus said: "Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy
laden, and I will give you rest." (Matthew 11: 28) That is exactly what we
all need - God's rest and peace in our spirits, minds and bodies. Christ is the
answer to this sin-sick world! My prayer is that you will cry out to our
Heavenly Father in Jesus' precious name for mercy and forgiveness, peace and
healing.
MY FRIEND - MAY JESUS CHRIST SAVE, HEAL & MAKE YOU
WHOLE. Amen
OUR GOD CANNOT CHANGE. It
is impossible for Him to change, He cannot and will not change! (Malachi 3:5;
Isaiah 40:8; Psalm 119:89; Hebrews 1:10-12; Revelation 1:18)
OUR GOD CANNOT LIE. It
is impossible for Him to lie. He cannot and will not lie! (Psalm 19:7-9;
Isaiah 45:3; John 14:6; John 17:3, 17; Hebrew 6:18)
OUR GOD CANNOT FAIL. It
is impossible for God to fail. He cannot and will not fail! (1 Kings
8:56; Joshua 23:14; Psalm 50:15; Psalm 91:15)
OUR GOD IS AVAILABLE 24/7. God
never slumbers nor sleeps. God is not too busy to hear our request or
answer our prayer. God never gets old or dies! (Psalm 121:1-8; Isaiah
41:10; Hebrew 13:5; Matthew 28:20; Matthew 11:28; Matthew 7:7-8; Matthew
18:18-20)
